Napton-on-the-Hill
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Template:GBdot Napton-on-the-Hill often referred to as just Napton is a small village and civil parish in the Stratford district of Warwickshire, England. Napton has a population of 976 (2001 census), and is situated off the A425 road between the towns of Daventry and Southam, which is a few miles to the west of the village.
As the title suggests the village is situated upon a hill, which overlooks the Oxford Canal. Napton also has a restored Windmill which dates from 1543, and is a local landmark which can be seen from some distance away.
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Just north of Napton lies a junction between the Oxford canal and the Grand Union Canal. There is also a flight of locks on the Oxford canal which climbs around the hill that Napton is situated upon.There is a magnificent view over the canal, and the surrounding countryside, from St Lawrence's church, which is at the top of the hill.The primary school in the village is named after the church.
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The name Napton is derived from the Anglo-Saxon cnaepp meaning 'hilltop' and tun meaning 'settlement'. The village was recorded as Neptone in the Domesday Book of 1086.
In the 14th century Napton was granted a market charter by King Edward II and throughout the Middle Ages it was one of the largest settlements in Warwickshire. However the market died out, and the population of the village today of around 1000, is roughly the same as it was in the year 1400.